SEC files stop orders against 20 purported mining companies

NEW YORK

NEW YORK Feb 3 The Securities and Exchange
Commission said on Monday it was filing stop order proceedings
against 20 purported mining companies believed to have included
false information in their registration statements.

According to the SEC's Enforcement Division, those
registration statements falsely named various individuals who
controlled the company, alleging that all were controlled by
John Briner, an attorney who was charged with committing a
"pump-and-dump" scheme in 2009.

A stop order is designed to prevent the sale of privately
held shares to the public under a materially misleading
statement. Under such an issue, no new shares can be issued
until the statement has been corrected.

Briner was suspended from practicing as an attorney on the
behalf of any entity that is regulated by the SEC, the
organization said in a statement.